Practical HR Tips, News & Advice. Updated Daily.
By Holly Jones, JD, Senior Legal Editor In yesterday’s Advisor, we took a look at why certain 401(k) benefits are not as attractive to candidates with significant student loan debt. These candidates might not be able to contribute, and so the benefit becomes a nonbenefit. Today we’ll explore how employers can offer an alternate benefit […]
There is really no absolute definition of an independent contractor. The important distinction, from the point of view of an employer, is that an independent contractor is an individual who is performing services for the employer but who is not an employee.
Most people in the United States believe they deserve a raise (89 percent) but would rather do onerous activities than actually request one, according to a survey by staffing firm Robert Half.
New IRS guidance spells out more issues the agency plans to address in imposing the excise tax on high-cost employer-sponsored health coverage (commonly known as the Cadillac tax). These include: (1) identifying taxpayers who may be liable for the excise tax; (2) aggregating several employers under one plan sponsor’s payment; (3) allocating the tax among […]
IRS on July 9 announced that it intends to amend regulations to prohibit defined benefit retirement plans from replacing retiree benefits being paid through joint and survivor, single-life or other annuity benefits with lump-sum distributions or other accelerated payments. The change is effective immediately, IRS said. Notice 2015-49 will amend IRS required minimum distribution regulations […]
Presumably put to final rest due to the Affordable Care Act, a program has been revived that establishes a health coverage tax credit for certain individuals — including COBRA qualified beneficiaries — who lose their jobs because of trade-related reasons. The new HCTC program, which will be effective through Dec. 31, 2019, includes provisions on […]
During the hiring process, a crucial decision for an employer is whether to bring on a new individual as an employee or as a contractor. Granted, in some businesses the choice may be clear, but in others it can require more of a judgment call. This decision is not a small one—it has legal consequences […]
Large employers learned more details in new IRS guidance about how to both report about their coverage and fill out and file IRS forms designed to determine whether they are meeting the Affordable Care Act’s coverage requirements for employers. Under the new guidance, if a large employer’s workforce is comprised entirely of part-time employees who were […]
Fidelity Investments told retirement plan sponsors and investment professionals in a late April notice that it had asked IRS to change or withdraw recently updated guidance on maintaining documentation for participant hardship withdrawal and plan loan requests. In a message on its website, Fidelity, one of the largest U.S. private-sector retirement plan recordkeepers and investment […]
The second round of revisions to IRS’ Employee Plans Compliance Resolution System in a week focused on failures in automatic enrollment and escalation in defined contribution retirement plans. The procedural changes from the agency also addressed DC plans’ automatic employee contribution features that experience short-term elective-deferral failures. The procedural changes in Revenue Procedure 2015-28 were released […]